It makes me think of my...
Illustration
Object:
It makes me think of my ultimate reward as I look ahead to where future generations will end up, but I will be buried before most of them will arrive. All I can do is to let them know that they will love it -- that I have looked ahead and seen it from my mountaintop. When Jesus returned after the resurrection his first word was "Rejoice!" What else do we need?
Moses died not because he had lost his strength, but because God willed it -- partly because of his sin at the well. Even his death was a reward, as we see he is in heaven in the New Testament story of Jesus on the mount. Death is not the end for him or us.
We must take the word of those who have the vision to look ahead to guide us in our lives. We only have to decide which ones have the right vision! Check with Bill Moyers (sorry!) We should first check with our pastor and our fellow members to determine who has been blessed with God's Spirit to make sure we are not being taken in.
We have to be careful not to revere the burial site rather than the message. That can be true of many great leaders like Martin Luther King and others. I don't even visit my own parents' grave because I know they are no longer there. I do read some of their letters, which I have saved. They were trying to make sure I was heading in the right direction in my life.
I worry about those who say they feel closer to God when they climb a mountain alone and that they don't need a church. If they did get a message from the Lord, then the first thing they should do is come down off the mountain and share it -- if for no other reason than to confirm that it was really from the Lord. Saint Paul warns us not to accept anyone who preaches a message different than the one he is preaching. He said that they will be damned, even if they say it was from a heavenly angel.
The book of Joshua follows with a continuation of what happened after Moses' death when Joshua was appointed Moses' successor to lead the people into the Promised Land. I should mention that the name Joshua in Greek is Jesus. He also led the people into a promised land much grander than Joshua's.
Moses never came down from the mountain, but he passed the word of God on to Joshua, who passed it on to others all the way down to today when he is passing it on to you and through you. God only does that through his people the church, so don't be led astray.
Moses died not because he had lost his strength, but because God willed it -- partly because of his sin at the well. Even his death was a reward, as we see he is in heaven in the New Testament story of Jesus on the mount. Death is not the end for him or us.
We must take the word of those who have the vision to look ahead to guide us in our lives. We only have to decide which ones have the right vision! Check with Bill Moyers (sorry!) We should first check with our pastor and our fellow members to determine who has been blessed with God's Spirit to make sure we are not being taken in.
We have to be careful not to revere the burial site rather than the message. That can be true of many great leaders like Martin Luther King and others. I don't even visit my own parents' grave because I know they are no longer there. I do read some of their letters, which I have saved. They were trying to make sure I was heading in the right direction in my life.
I worry about those who say they feel closer to God when they climb a mountain alone and that they don't need a church. If they did get a message from the Lord, then the first thing they should do is come down off the mountain and share it -- if for no other reason than to confirm that it was really from the Lord. Saint Paul warns us not to accept anyone who preaches a message different than the one he is preaching. He said that they will be damned, even if they say it was from a heavenly angel.
The book of Joshua follows with a continuation of what happened after Moses' death when Joshua was appointed Moses' successor to lead the people into the Promised Land. I should mention that the name Joshua in Greek is Jesus. He also led the people into a promised land much grander than Joshua's.
Moses never came down from the mountain, but he passed the word of God on to Joshua, who passed it on to others all the way down to today when he is passing it on to you and through you. God only does that through his people the church, so don't be led astray.
